Sunday, April 05, 2009

Cooking for Family

This is a shot of my well-loved special cookbook. It is a binder full of successful recipes from magazines, friends and the internet. I have all of the pages in sheet protectors and they are sorted by chicken, soups/stews, pasta, fish, dessert, etc. It is a great addition to my cookbook library.

I used to have years and years of Gourmet and Bon Appetit magazines. Even though I had an uncanny ability to recall the issue for a particular favorite recipe, I got tired of storing so many issues. Hence, the binder.

One of the all-time family favorites is a recipe for Lemon Meringue Pie, which I made on Sunday, starting with fresh lemons purloined from my SIL's lemon tree:

The lemon filling is perfect, finished with fresh lemon zest and butter. It rests in the best-ever all-butter pie pastry (the recipe is in Apple Pie Perfect - I no longer use any other crust recipe).

I love TONS of meringue on my pies, so I use six egg whites.

Voila! Just before it goes in the oven.

FINISHED! There was only a tiny piece left...perfect for Bruce's lunch box.

Meet My Quilting Friends!

Favorite Quotes

Never be afraid of being generous. It pays off in spades. -- Melody JohnsonWine is sunlight held together by water. -- Galileo

Self-doubt can be an ally. This is because it serves as an indicator of aspiration. It reflects love, love of something we dream of doing, and desire, desire to do it. If you find yourself asking yourself (and your friends), "Am I really a writer? Am I really an artist?" chances are you are. The counterfeit innovator is wildly self-confident. The real one is scared to death. -- Steven Pressfield, from "The War of Art."

I think every artist who succeeds (in their own terms) has some ability to keep moving forward in the face of constant obstacles...emotional, mental, financial, physical...and that is what sets them apart from all the others who have tried and quit. This is also what sets them apart from those who always talk about trying or starting but never get beyond the talking stage.-- Nancy Crow, from "Nancy Crow."

The biggest thing separating people from their artistic ambitions is not a lack of talent. It's the lack of a deadline. Give someone an enormous task, a supportive community, and a friendly-yet-firm due date, and miracles will happen.-- Chris Baty, from "No Plot, No Problem."